"The Day After..."

Also known as:




For retail workers thats exactly what it is. This is quite possibly THE WORST DAY OF THE YR! Yes the sales numbers are great but the people & the level of crazy is enough to drive some workers into hiding.

I think retail workers should be getting HOLIDAY PAY on this horrendous day, but unless you work a double your not getting anything extra.

Back in early 05 I worked at the Starbucks located inside of a Target, so there for making me a Target employee, not Starbucks. Everything was made the same etc but I was paid by Target b/c they owned that franchise of Starbucks.

So my first BLACK FRIDAY experience was in 2005. OMG. I opened in Starbucks I had to be there at 5a. Store opened @ 6am. There was none of this opening at 5 nonsense.

This was back before the economy sucked ass, don't forget.

The parking lot had a good number of cars in it when I got there @ 5!! What the heck you crazies! GO HOME! Well by opening time people were lined up.



Guess where they come FIRST. To get COFFEE. I wanted to shoot myself. That was the longest shift & shortest lunch of my life.

Then as I am clocking out one of the Managers, Brian, asks me if I could work a cash register, someone called in sick. It was just until they could find a replacement Brian assured me that it would only be for 2 hrs MAX. Okay, how could I say no its only a few more hrs and its extra $$.

When 3 or so hrs had passed and I had barely had time to breathe I see Brian coming towards me. "Can you work the last 2 hrs of this shift? We couldn't find anyone, but we're covered later" Yah sure what the heck... I was there making money and I didnt have plans after work but to SLEEP.

OMG if something didnt ring up w.the sale price ppl freaked out like it was the end of the world. I swear I had my blinky light on for help soo many times. I had to keep telling myself "Kelli this shift puts you over, you will get OT for this" Or I would have lost it.

Seriously people come into the store with this crazed look in their eyes.

I left Target not long after BF & went to work in a REAL Starbucks, thinking it would be more low key and such, plus I got paid better & we got tips.

Well the store I applied for wasnt hiring but their "sister location" was, awesome. Well turns out the "sister LOCATION" (not store) happened to be located in a MALL. I took the job, it was Feb. Thinking I would request BF off well in advance.

WRONG.

We got a letter stapled to our tip envelopes in the the END of SEPT/BEG. of OCT. saying that NO ONE (if they hadn't already requested it) can have BF off. If they "called out" or missed their shift as a No call/no show THEY WOULD BE FIRED. Gasp. We even had a meeting/setup for BF the day before Thanksgiving.

Yah. Im serious.

Do we even need to ask how that day went down. LONGEST 8.5 HOURS of my life. Target was a cake walk compared to that. To top that off my boss asked me to stay after my shift was over. Hell no. I learned my lesson the yr before @ Target.

That was my year WORKING BF. I left Starbucks before the next one came around. I couldn't handle that... plus my boss, Lori, was a little overbearing and bitchy. No thanks. I loved working at Starbucks but I didnt love some of HER antics.

I would rather spend BF relaxing or shopping in the AFTERNOON... I will never be one of those AM crazies. I'll leave that up to the more seasoned shoppers, esp now that I have a child. Sleep is essential.

Hope everyone had a Great Thanksgiving... You may NOW start decorating for/ celebrating CHRISTMAS. Thanksgiving had its day. Although it was very much overshadowed by and [not appreciated] overbearing Christmas.

Thx for sticking with me [us]... the journey REALLY has just begun!
-Kelli-Sue

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